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Los Angeles Metro Says TAP Transit Cards Will Support Apple Pay Later This Year

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The Los Angeles Metro today confirmed that TAP cards used for public transit in the city will work with Apple Pay later this year, allowing them to be added to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch for quick access to buses and trains in LA.

losangelesapplepaytapcards.jpg

The LA Metro said last year that it was working with Apple to add mobile payment support for iPhones by the end of 2019, but the rollout didn't end up happening and work on the transition continues. In a tweet today, the LA Metro said that iPhone and Apple Watch support for TAP cards will be coming sometime in 2020.

Los Angeles has been working to overhaul its TAP system, introducing upgraded fare boxes with real-time data about fares purchased online and developing a new TAP mobile app that allows for payments and TAP account management.

As with other transit systems around the world that support Apple Pay, the Apple Pay integration in Los Angeles will allow commuters to hold a compatible iPhone or Apple Watch near a TAP card reader to pay transit fares. TAP works with 25 transit systems across LA county.

Apple maintains a list of all of the cities that offer Apple Pay support for their transit systems, including Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, London, New York City, Portland, and more.

Article Link: Los Angeles Metro Says TAP Transit Cards Will Support Apple Pay Later This Year
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2020/07/14/la-metro-tap-cards-apple-pay/
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mrr

mrr

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Apr 19, 2008
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Cool! I’ve been waiting to use my TAP card with my Apple Watch for quite some time but since I am now working from home for the duration, it will be a while before I get to use the bus again.
 
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dawindmg08

dawindmg08

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Sep 25, 2008
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Great news! Metro is really trying to make riding easier and more seamless; once they fully consolidate the other services (like bike sharing) it will be nice to have one thing to swipe instead of carrying an extra card in my wallet.
 
Khan Piesse

Khan Piesse

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Jul 14, 2020
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Will this become available for Google Pay? It'd be a terrible shame if it weren't. Transit is supposed to be accessible to everyone.
 
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Erehy Dobon

Erehy Dobon

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freedomlinux said:
Since Clipper is used across multiple transit agencies (apparently 22 of them!) I'm afraid it will be slow-moving since they need everyone to prepare and execute changes.
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Nah, it's because SF Bay Area transit agencies are run by incompetent nitwits.

Note that Tokyo Metro found it relatively easy to crib Suica from JR to come up with Pasmo.

And JR was able to bring the Suica card's NFC contactless payment technology to cellphones. IN 2005.

And then all the other major Japanese transit agencies acquiesced and implemented Suica's payment platform. Today, I can pay for a Kyoto city bus ride with my iPhone as a tourist. I understand using your Apple Watch as a subway pass is pretty common these days.

Clipper Card is a joke. Its implementation took eight more years than planned and debuted with 5 transit agencies in 2009, four years after Japanese started using "osaifu keitai" (literally "wallet phone"). It took another three years to add 3 more agencies.

You still can't do much else with Clipper Card other than pay for parking at a handful of garages (SFO is one).

By contrast I can buy groceries with my iPhone's Suica app from the convenience stores in Japan. Pay for coffee. Rather than have a ton of minuscule credit card transaction, I can load up my Suica card with 5000 yen and just flag that in Mint.com as "vacation expenses."
 
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ISprainedMyUvula

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May 7, 2017
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I wish Ventra would pull their head out of their a$$e$ and launch this in Chicago. It’s been “coming soon” for a year and a half.
 
simonmet

simonmet

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Don’t understand the delay in getting Apple Wallet support for Opal in Sydney too. It’s one less card I have to carry and another nail in the coffin of physical wallets.

I’m guessing it’s about the cut Apple is demanding, but given the number of Opal cards I’ve lost (which are free in Sydney) it might not end up costing them that much. I’d still prefer to top up my balance manually however, or within the Wallet app with Apple Pay.

I always have my phone in hand on public transport, but often have to fumble around for physical cards.
 
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alexandr

alexandr

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GeoSciGuy said:
With Apple being a Bay Area company, it’s embarrassing that Tokyo, Moscow, and Sydney get this before the Clipper Card.
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seriously. ny was on track for end of '20, but now it's delayed. which is a shame considering the lack of passengers, actually would've been a great time to roll it out faster...
 
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MacClueless

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Jun 21, 2006
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Don’t get too excited... they announced this years ago and it never happened. And let’s face it, mass transit as we know it is dead. Shoulder-to-shoulder crowding and once a day sanitation (at best) just won’t cut it anymore.
 
dontwalkhand

dontwalkhand

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Jul 5, 2007
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Lozza013 said:
Someone tell PTV to hurry up with Myki on iPhones and Apple Watch.
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Sydney has it, but they use the same vendor LA, NY, and London does, Cubic. Melbourne uses Vix technology, which is the same vendor Seattle and Phoenix (now) uses.
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T-R-S said:
the US is so far behind Europe on this stuff ...
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Prepare to also be more mad... because most of the Europe Apple Pay systems were installed by US companies, like Cubic transportation. Seriously no reason why it can’t be happening faster in the US, especially when these US companies are installing the systems in the rest of the world.
 
I

ISprainedMyUvula

macrumors member
May 7, 2017
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dontwalkhand said:
It has already been posted by LA Metro. On their twitter, and on their own blog. I am sure it is coming.
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Ventra Chicago said it was “coming soon” in March of 2019.

Then they said “by the end of the year.”

Then right before New Years they sent an email to their entire customer base reminding them the make sure iOS was updated for some “exciting new features” that were coming.

Their app hasn’t been updated in a year. It still can’t take advantage of the taller aspect ratio of the newer (three year old) phones.
 
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MacClueless

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Jun 21, 2006
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dontwalkhand said:
It has already been posted by LA Metro. On their twitter, and on their own blog. I am sure it is coming.
Click to expand...

Well they did the same thing four years ago and that never happened. They don’t have a very good track record. I guess it doesn’t matter no one pays anyway there’s no fare enforcement, no social distancing, you don’t even have to wear a mask. I have to admit I don’t miss the constant smell of urine. It’ll be a while before I’m back.
 
M

MacClueless

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Jun 21, 2006
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ISprainedMyUvula said:
Ventra Chicago said it was “coming soon” in March of 2019.

Then they said “by the end of the year.”

Then right before New Years they sent an email to their entire customer base reminding them the make sure iOS was updated for some “exciting new features” that were coming.

Their app hasn’t been updated in a year. It still can’t take advantage of the taller aspect ratio of the newer (three year old) phones.
Click to expand...

Hard to understand huh? It doesn’t seem that hard. Between Corona virus and mass trains being overwhelmed with homeless I don’t have a lot of hope for mass transit which is really sad. I think they need to double down on enforcement for safety and to keep it about transit. If transit systems become homeless shelters people won’t go back.
 
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